In a variety of engine-powered vehicles including ground vehicles, aircraft and marine vessels, monitoring and diagnostic systems are typically employed to detect the presence of various undesirable operating conditions such as overheating or overspeeding the engine, low or high oil pressure, low or high fuel pressure, high oil temperature and the like. These monitoring and diagnostic systems also typically include instruments, gauges, indicators, or other caution/warning devices which are used to warn the operator of such conditions. These instruments, gauges or other devices are typically connected to various sensors, switches and other control apparatus for monitoring and/or controlling various systems and conditions associated with the particular vehicle or vessel via a wiring harness, one or more electronic control systems, and/or a communications data link. Depending upon the particular monitoring and/or diagnostic system associated with a particular vehicle or vessel, vital vehicle/vessel functions are monitored and various levels of sensed parameters are displayed on various gauges and/or other indicator displays. When a malfunction or fault, or an impending malfunction or fault, is detected, such malfunction/fault or a corresponding condition indicative of such malfunction/fault is brought to the attention of the operator by any one of a plurality of visual warning mechanisms such as by illuminating a warning light or caution panel, by flashing an indicator light, or by flashing a particular gauge. These visual mechanisms are more than adequate when operating in a day-time viewing mode.
Today, many of the present monitoring and diagnostic systems include multi-colored LCD or CRT screens wherein operation of a particular system outside normal operating limits will be displayed in accordance with a particular color code. For example, many gauges will include a green area for indicating the normal operating range of a particular system parameter, a yellow area for indicating a caution zone, and a red area for indicating a warning zone. In a multi-colored LCD or CRT monitoring system, operation of a particular vehicle function outside of normal limits may trigger or illuminate a yellow display when the particular parameter system or gauge is operating in a caution zone, and such monitoring system may trigger or illuminate a red display when the particular system parameter or gauge is operating in a warning zone. Other colors are likewise utilized in association with such monitoring/warning systems to catch the attention of the operator during normal day-light hours.
The brightness and intensity associated with the known LCD/CRT screens, or other monitoring/warning systems incorporated into motor vehicles, aircraft, and marine vessels is predicated upon day-time usage and, as a result, such illumination is normally too bright to maintain normal night-time vision during night-time operations. Visual references and depth perception change with night operations. Distances and rates of closure are more difficult to judge and visual references are more limited. Refraction and reflection of gauge and screen lighting off of the windshield, glare shield, canopy or other viewing medium may induce false indications as to objects observed and their relative position and distance from the vehicle or vessel. Such glare also detracts from the operator's night-time viewing and scanning capability and inhibits night vision. This decrease in visual effectiveness at night is minimized by reducing the brightness and intensity of any instrumentation and other operator lighting to provide minimum screen glare or reflection yet still allow adequate gauge and/or other instrument reading and interpretation.
As a result, most known monitoring/warning systems will include some mechanism for either manually or automatically dimming the system. For example, some systems include a night-time viewing mode switch or dimming switch so that the brightness and intensity of the caution and warning panel, or the operator interface display screen, can be adequately dimmed to such a level that the illumination of such system will not interfere with night-time vision. In addition, often times the night-time viewing mode of any particular caution/warning system will effectively eliminate the multi-colored caution/warning displays associated with such system as most night-time operating modes will utilize a monochrome red background for all viewing displays. As a result, due to the dimness of the display screen and elimination and/or reduction of the colored caution/warning displays, illuminated malfunction or fault conditions during night-time operations may be easily ignored due to the low light illumination of such displays when such systems are operating in a night-time viewing mode.
It is therefore desirable to provide a warning system which will catch the eye of the operator when a system malfunction, fault or abnormality is illuminated while the monitoring system is operating in a night-time viewing mode.
Accordingly, the present invention is directed to overcoming one or more of the problems as set forth above.